The Lesser of Two Evils
by heatherlea75
Summary: Sequel to The Choice of a Lifetime. This is Vetri/Hyde's side of the story of Jackie and Hyde.
1. Intro

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything. Okay, a cat and a car, except I'm still paying on the car.

**Warning: **Language

**Author's Note:** I've had several requests for this sesquel to The Choice of a Lifetime - it took me this long to find the inspiration for Hyde's choice! But I'm definitely inspired now, so I present Hyde's (Vetri's) side of the story. You'll notice the title is quite a bit less romantic than Jackie/Love's title. The story, too, is told differently. It has to be. Hyde and Jackie are different, and needed to be taught differently. I think you'll understand as you read. :) I will be posting a chapter every Monday. (If I happen to become speedy, I'll post more often, but just count on the Monday posts.) If you haven't read The Choice of a Lifetime, it is essential that you do so. I don't think you'll understand this one is you don't, and there is interplay between the two stories. Those who have read it but not recently may want to refresh their memories. Anyway, thank you so much to those of you who read my stories, and especially those who review, and especially especially to those who requested this story! I hope you enjoy! (Imagine WILL be posted in the next few days!)

**The Lesser of Two Evils **

_Introduction _

_Long before a human being comes to exist on earth, a soul is created. And somewhere above the earth, deep in the blue of the sky, among the clouds, that soul waits patiently for their turn to be born into life. After all, a body is a human being. But a body, a human being, requires a soul to be a person._

That's what God or whoever told me when I was thought up. Don't know if its true or not. Just 'cause the guy's in charge doesn't mean he knows everything. That's my opinion, anyway. Leon agrees. Says you can't trust the man on earth, so I guess you probably can't trust the man up here, either.

So I'm waiting to be born. Been waiting a damned long time – this line is fricking ridiculous. The other UBS' around me are all chattering away, especially Love, about how cool its gonna be to be born. Wondering what they'll be, male, female, famous, infamous, all that kind of crap. I think I'd rather just stay here. Earth really doesn't sound all that amazing to me. A bunch of people with a bunch of problems that never get solved. From what I've seen of it – and I have, I've got connections, man – earth looks like a close cousin to hell.

Sometimes I wish God or the man or whoever would second thought me.

Love is pretty cool, when she's not jibbering all the time. I know she's gonna be a chick. She's pink. She's gonna be hot, too. Her pink is deeper than the other to-be chicks, and that means hot. Yeah, I've got a guide connection, a dude named Leon. He's a new guide guy, and a little weird; always going on about film whatever the hell that is. But he's cool, and he sneaks me out of line to show me stuff.

He taught me lots of fun words, too.

Love wonders how I know stuff. Its all about connections, man. I would tell her, but she's too enamoured with the surroundings to pay attention. She likes the birds that come around sometimes, and I bet there's one somewhere close by now.

I don't tell her she's gonna be hot. I just tell her she's gonna be a chick.

She calls me Vetri. She's the only one who does, really. She's the only one I let, and for the love of God or whoever, I don't know why I let her.

I'm gonna be a guy. My outline is blue, and plus, Leon told me. He also showed me some earth magazines with pictures of nude women. Nice. Very nice.

Love's looking around again, the top of her pink outline rising and rolling, not paying any attention to the line moving in front of her.

"The line is moving," I say.

And then it happens. I'm pulled out of line and moving faster until I can't see anything but silver and gold. Then it goes black. Black is cool. Leon told me about getting high on earth, how you want to laugh all the time, and I kind of feel that way now. My head is all light and I guess I'm dizzy because the black seems to be rotating. Its cool.

Damn, I hope Love is okay. She can be a little clingy. Once, I snuck off while she was sleeping and when I came back she was all panicked. I had to trick her into believing that she'd been sleeping until the second I got back and she'd just woken up. Think she believed me.

Then it all stops, the movement, the black. Its done. The white foggy stuff we've been standing in, or on, whatever, is back. Its all the same except I'm alone with some angel dude. I've seen him before. Leon pointed him out to me, told me he was a pretty cool dude. I look at him, and he's giving me a look with a raised eyebrow.

"You shouldn't swear, UBS Vetri," he says.

"You shouldn't read my mind, man," I answer.

He grins and nods. "Fair enough. I'm Paul, your..."

"My guide, right?"

Again, he raises that eyebrow. "Yes. You catch on quick."

If I was in human form, I'd be smirking. "I'm cool that way."

He chuckles. "So, do you want to know whats in store for you?"

I lift what will eventually become my shoulders in what I guess is a shrug. "I guess. If I must."

Truth is, I don't care where I end up. What does it matter?

"You must. Your name is to be Steven J. Hyde."

I frown. "J? Doesn't it stand for anything?"

Paul smiles. "No, actually. Just J."

Weird, but whatever. "Fine, so I'm a male, Steven J. Hyde." I look around, and all I see is the white stuff. You know, I'm a bit bored with the white. Its just...white. And in line, the UBS' weren't developed enough for the colors to be much fun to look at. Except Love. Her pink was kind of cool.

"I've got some things to show you, so I need you to take my hand."

I glare at him, I think. "I'm not holding your hand, man."

Leon told me there are men on earth that hold other men's hands. Yeah. That's not gonna be me. Boy on boy action sounds like a dream some guy who should have been pink would have about his best friend.

Paul doesn't say anything but grabs the flap where my hand will eventually be.

I'd tell you about what happened, but its boring. Except I will admit that it was pretty cool to watch my outline double in thickness, and the laser-like lines all over me all headed towards the center of me. Leon told me about lasers. Gotta say, I hope I get to them for real. Because sometimes Leon exaggerates, or just doesn't know what he's talking about, I think. He says some weird stuff.

Paul clears his throat and I sigh and look at him. This dude doesn't like being ignored, obviously.

"You have a choice to make, Vetri. A choice between two women."

Hey, that sounds pretty cool. I take a step towards him, I think. I know I moved closer to him.

"Keep in mind that the choice you make will impact your life in incredible ways. The choice you make here will define the love you give and are given in return, and nothing is more important on earth than love."

I get the feeling he says that to every UBS he guides, so I just cross my arm things.

He waits for a reaction, but I just stand there. What in the hell does he want me to say? Oops. I grin when he lifts that eyebrow.

He sighs. "Don't you want to ask me how you'll make your decision?"

I shake my head, or whatever. "Nah, man. I know. You're gonna show me some stuff about my choices and then I'm gonna pick."

He looks a bit shocked, then frowns. "Have you met Leon, by any chance?"

I grin.

He rolls his eyes and starts muttering some crap about talking to God about the new guy. Poor Leon. Crap, I probably got him in trouble. But hell, if God is really all-forgiving like he's supposed to be, Leon'll get off easy.

He comes closer to me and puts his hand on my form, just about six inches below my chin. I glare, but for some reason, can't move back. I look down. His hand is moving, up and down, up and down. Something inside me is pounding.

Its weird.

"That's a heart, Vetri."

Huh. A heart.

"The way you feel right here after you've seen your choices is how you'll know what to do."

You know, Paul sounds like a chick.

"Lets just get this over with," I say.

He turns me around and directs me to the opening in this room. "Look," he says after we're just centimeters from the familiar white fog out there.

"I don't see anything." Just rolls of fog. Sure. I suppose my choices are just going to magically appear out there.

"You will. Now. Your first choice."

So then the fog starts to part, and there's blue.

Paul pushes me. Damn, he pushed me! Yeah, is that really how someone who's supposed to be helping me should treat me? Then again it takes too much energy to fight it, so I don't.

I'm falling, and again, its kind of fun. I float out into the blue. Can't really see anything except the blue.

"Your first choice, Steven J. Hyde, is in Naperville, Illinois...."


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I don't own.

**Warning: **Language, adult situations (mild)

**Author's Note: **Thanks so very much for the reviews! I know there wasn't a heck of a lot to the Intro. So here we go, into the story! Please keep in mind that Edna in this chapter is not canon Edna. :) I hope you enjoy Vetri's side of the story and his choices. (Wow, I'm a day early this week. Hee hee!)

**The Lesser of Two Evils **

_Choice 1 – The Good – Naperville, Illinois _

**Naperville, an upper-middle class suburb of Chicago. You're the son of Bud and Edna Hyde. Bud works as...he claims to be a stockbroker, but no one is sure if that's true or not. Somehow, he manages to afford the modest house on Redstart Road. Edna is a housewife, until ....**

Paul suddenly stops talking and the opening in the fog in front of me abruptly closes just as I was starting to see a house. Decent looking. I glance at Paul. "What the hel...heck?"

He frowns at me. "I have to explain something to you before we continue."

"Why?"

He rolls his eyes. "I'm trying to stave off a few of your interruptions." He looks away. "Not that it will do me much good."

My turn to roll my eyes, or whatever you call what will eventually be my eyes. "Whatever."

"About each choice, I'm going to show you three themes – the good, the bad, and the ugly.

What I show you will leave significant time gaps. Now, I'll be able to give you a little more detail about certain aspects, but not much. I need you to just trust that what I'm showing you is what you need to know."

I shrug. "Fine." Whatever. This whole thing is stupid. Besides, he told me I'm choosing between two women. I figure I'll just see who's hotter and go with that one.

"Good." He smiles. "Now...."

**Until you started school. She was bored, so she took a job waiting tables at a fancy restaurant. You live comfortably, no real money worries, at least not at first...**

"Whoo! Yeah, man, you smashed that one!"

"Yeah, Hyde! Whoo hoo!"

A little boy, about nine years old, circled third base on the ballfield, pumping his fists in the air and grinning. When he reached home plate, he jumped a good two feet in the air above it and landed on the base with a joyous yelp. He ran over to his friends and nodded. "You guys see that?"

His friends, one tall, the other skinny, both slapped him on the back. He shook his head and glared at one of them, the skinny one. "Man, Forman, you hit like a girl."

Forman rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well, you hit like...Well, not like a girl, but not like a guy, either!"

A girl with red hair who was taller than all three of them gave Forman a little push. "Shut up, Eric." She smiled, a huge toothy one. "I'm up! And I'm gonna hit one farther than yours, Hyde!"

The three boys watched her skip over to the home plate.

Forman frowned. "Why is Donna even on this team? Baseball is for guys! Shouldn't she be playing dollies or something?"

Steven Hyde shrugged. "She's on the team to make up for you, Forman."

The other kid, Michael Kelso, grinned. "Burn!" He looked towards the bleachers. "Hey, Hyde, where's your dad? You said he was coming. All I see is your mom." He waved. "Hi, Mrs. Hyde!"

Hyde turned and scanned the crowd. He gave a limp wave to his mother, who waved and smiled back. His own face remained unreadable, but he swallowed noticibly. His father had promised he'd be there, but he wasn't.

_Vetri frowned. "So this is the good part of this choice? His father not showing up for a baseball game?" _

_Paul shook his head. "Patience, Vetri. Just keep watching." _

Hyde noticed someone else and turned back to Michael Kelso with a smirk. "You know who I see? I see that Jackie girl that follows you around all the time." He elbowed Forman. "You know, the one who we heard singing that song about him? Oh, Michael, you're so dreamy. Oh, Michael, I wanna kiss you like they do in the movies."

He and Forman burst into laughter while Michael Kelso glared at the both of them. Then his face lit up. "You know, Hyde, your mom is really hot."

Hyde's laughter immediately stopped and he punched his friend in the shoulder. "Shut up, Kelso, or I'm gonna hit a homer with your face, next!"

A few minutes later, the kids were heading out to the field to play defense. Hyde looked towards the stands and smiled at his mother. Then he looked at the little dark-haired girl with pretty skin and eyes he could never figure out who stared at his friend Kelso. With a sigh, Hyde turned back and headed to his position at shortstop.

_Vetri crossed his arm flaps or whatever they were called. "I think my idea of good and your idea of good aren't the same, Paul. How is any of this stuff good?" He shrugged. "I mean, yeah, he's __cool and he hit a home run. And he's obviously smarter than either of those two he hangs out with, but still." _

_Paul sighed. "Just keep watching." _

Later that night, Hyde stood in the doorway of his home's kitchen, eating a popsicle and staring towards the front door. The hallway between the kitchen and front door is long, decorated in gentle colors and neat, and at the end of it, Hyde's mother leaned against the wall.

"So you're leaving."

The man in front of her, Bud Hyde, grimaced. "Its for the best, Edna."

Hyde turned and went back into the kitchen. He sat down at the table and stared at his half-eaten popsicle.

_"Again, this is good? His father's leaving them?" Vetri snapped. _

_"Watch." Paul sounded a little strained, and Vetri sighed. _

"Oh, Steven, honey, you'll spoil your dinner."

Hyde looked up. "Its just sugar water, Mom."

Edna smiled and took the seat next to her son. She looked tired and teary, her smile was too wide. "What do you say we go out to dinner tonight? Wherever you want to go. And then maybe a movie."

He stared at the table. "Are you and Dad getting a divorce?"

For a long moment, Edna didn't answer. Her eyes filled with tears, and she reached for her son's hand. She held it. "I don't know, Steven, but I think we might be," she answered finally, her voice shaking. "Honey, it has nothing to do with you. We both love you so much." She chocked back a sob. "I love you so much, Steven."

Hyde continued to stare at the table, but he squeezed his mother's hand and didn't let go. "Can we have pizza tonight?"

Edna smiled. "Sure, honey. We'll stay in and watch whatever you want to on t.v."

He smiled, one that was forced and thin. "I'll call the pizza place." He stood up. "You want pepperoni?"

_Vetri looked away for a moment. "Poor kid," he mumbled. _

_Paul nodded. "Divorce is the most difficult for children." _

_"At least his mom is pretty cool," Vetri commented. He looked at Paul and found the guide smiling at him. "What?" _

_Paul shrugged. "Oh, nothing. Come on. Keep watching." _

A few hours later, Steven Hyde lay on the couch in his mother's living room, fast asleep. His mother sat next to him, his feet in her lap. On the telvision in front of them, The Twilight Zone was ending. Edna looked at her sleeping child. Her eyes again welled. "Oh, Steven," she whispered. "What are we going to do?" Gently, she slid his feet off her lap and stood up. She looked down at her son and wished he wasn't so big now. Wished she could pick him up in her arms and carry him to his bed.

Instead, she crossed the room and grabbed the blanket resting neatly on the back of Bud's lazy boy chair.

As she put the blanket over her son, she cried softly. Her marriage was over, and she knew Bud. He wasn't only leaving her. He was leaving Steven as well, all for the love of some tart secretary who wouldn't last longer than a few months.

Taking a deep breath, she smiled and touched Steven's cheek. "Its just you and me now, Steven," she whispered. "And I promise you, it'll always be you and me."

_Paul watched Vetri. Vetri was staring at the scene and standing still. "You see the good now, Vetri?" _

_Vetri shrugged. "I guess, but when am I going to meet the woman?" _

_"The woman?" _

_"You said I have to pick between two women." And then he realized. "Oh, wait. So one of the women I have to pick between is my mother?" _

_Paul smiled but didn't say anything. _

_Vetri frowned. His plan of choosing the hottest woman was kind of shot to hell. _

_"Vetri, please. Your language is just atrocious." _

_Vetri couldn't help but chuckle. "I keep telling you, man, don't read my mind and you won't have to deal with it." _

_Paul rolled his eyes. "Come on. More to see." _

**Several years later. Hyde is now seventeen. His father has been in and out of his life, mostly out, and Edna has had to work two jobs in order to support them. However, she always manages to be around when she needs her, even at moments when he wishes she wasn't. **

It was the middle of the afternoon, but Hyde was in bed. He wasn't alone. A beautiful girl with raven hair was in it with him, and her head rested on his bare chest. The sheet around her had slipped, leaving her back bare.

_Vetri grinned and nodded. "Now this is good," he said. _

Hyde ran his hand through her hair. "You okay, Jackie?"

She sat up.

_Vetri stared at her. She was beautiful. He was suddenly having a hard time breathing and felt...tingly all over. He heard Paul chuckle and grimaced, but didn't take his eyes of the gorgeous girl. "Shut up," he muttered. _

"I'm okay," she said with a shy smile. She leaned on Hyde and touched his cheek with her fingertips. "Was I...I mean, did I do it right?" She then pressed her lips together, buried her head in the crook of his neck. "Never mind!"

Hyde chuckled and ran his hand down her back. Up and down, slowly and tenderly. "Jackie, it was awesome," he said. He shrugged his shoulder and she popped up, her cheeks flushed and eyes darting. "You were fantastic." He reached up and kissed her. "Amazing."

She smiled, one of those smiles that light up the room, the sky, everything. "It felt so good, Steven," she whispered. She rolled so she was comletely on top of him, and now her expression turned seductive. She lowered her lips to his. "Wanna make me feel good again?"

Hyde smirked. "Anything for you, doll." They started to kiss.

Just then, there was a knock on Hyde's closed bedroom door. "Steven? I'm home. Are you still in bed? For pete's sake, kiddo, get up."

Jackie sat up as did Hyde, but Jackie looked panicked. "Steven!" she whispered. "Oh my god..." Her eyes widened. "Will she kill us if she finds out I'm here?"

Hyde grinned and patted her back. "Just calm down, Jackie." He got out of bed and pulled his jeans on. "I'll go see what she wants. Don't worry, okay?" He pulled a shirt on.

She pouted. "Fine." Then she pointed at him. "But if she kills us, I'm blaming you, Steven. You and your dirty urges."

He grinned and kissed her head on the way to the door. "Whatever."

He left and closed the door quickly when he saw his mom standing just a dozen feet down the hall. He smiled his sweetest smile. "Hey, Mom. Thought you were at work."

Edna stood with one hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow. "You have a girl in there, don't you, Steven?" As her son began to deny it, she held up her other hand. "Don't even try, my boy." She sighed and wished she could scold him, but he was seventeen, and she herself had given her parents fits with her romantic relationships as a teenager. Hypocrisy was never her thing. "Is it Jackie?"

Hyde nodded.

She sighed again. "I hope you're being safe, Steven. You'd better be."

"I am, Mom. Trust me."

The mother and son looked at one another for a long moment.

Hyde raised his eyebrow, looking almost identical to his mother. "Aren't you going to yell at me?"

Edna sighed and took a few steps towards him. "I suppose I'd rather know where you are and who you're with than not." She'd often had nightmares about him doing strange things with even stranger girls in yet stranger places. She liked Jackie, and he was home. That was something, at least. And Edna was realistic enough to not expect her teenaged son to be celibate. "Tell Jackie she's staying for dinner." She shook her head. "I'm just going to go to the store. Is an hour going to be enough time for you?"

Hyde smirked. "Make it an hour and a half."

_Vetri nodded, his smile wide. "Now that's what I call an awesome mom," he said. "Wouldn't most mothers have a total fit?" _

_Paul nodded. "Likely. Although with sons it seems a bit different, but you're definitely right. Edna is a bit more...open minded, I suppose." _

_"And Jackie," Vetri continued, feeling a little odd and far away. "I've seen her before, haven't I?" He remembered the little girl at the baseball game. "Wait, she was that girl who was staring at Kelso at the game." _

_Paul sighed. "Yes." _

_Vetri smirked. "So I got her and Kelso didn't. Cool." _

_Paul said nothing, and Vetri looked at him. "Right?" _

_Paul gave a slight shake of his head. "Come on, Vetri. More to see." _

Later that night, Hyde returned home and sat on the couch with his mom. Edna smiled wearily at him, not lifting her head from the back of the couch. "Jackie get home okay?"

"Yeah." He glanced at his mother. "She loved dinner."

Edna continued looking at her son even as he turned and began watching the television. "So," she said. "Are you and Jackie getting serious?"

Hyde made a face. "Nah. Come on, Mom. Its just a fling. Really. I mean, of course its just a fling. I don't...I mean, I don't do serious relationships. Those are for Forman, man."

But Edna suspected otherwise. Her son rarely spoke so hesitantly. "I see." She turned and watched a bit of the show. "You should take her out to dinner, Steven. There's a new restaurant out on Odgen, by the movie theater. I've heard its good."

Hyde didn't answer for a few minutes. "Don't have any money for that, Mom. Besides, even if she wanted...I mean, yeah, I guess she'd like it...."

Edna smiled tenderly and reached over to pat his hand. "Don't worry about the money. I'll loan you some." He looked at her questioningly. "I saw the way you looked at her at dinner, Steven. Its no fling." She squeezed his hand. "Don't worry. I'll think of something macho you can do around here to pay me back."

Hyde rolled his eyes, but a few minute later, leaned over and kissed Edna's cheek. "Thanks, Mom."

And to Edna, there was no dollar amount too high a price to pay for t hat.

_Paul smiled. "She's a good woman." _

_Vetri nodded. "Yeah." He grinned. "Any mother who doesn't mind her son having sex with his girlfriend in her house pretty much rocks." He elbowed Paul. "By the way, can we go back and see some of that stuff with Jackie?" _

_Paul chuckled and shook his head. "Its not something you should watch, Vetri. Trust me. Its more fun to experience it." _

_Hyde scowled. "Yeah, I know that, but I'm gonna have to wait awhile before I get the chance. Can't you just throw me a bone, here?" _

_"Come on." Paul took hold of Vetri and pulled. "A little bit more to see." _

**It's now 1984. Hyde is in New York, and he's a roadie with a rock band called Aerosmith. He helps set the stage for the group on their tours, takes care of mics and instruments, food and drink, whatever the band needs. In return, he gets to party with them, and of course, gets his share of women, booze, and drugs. In short, he's living his idea of the high life – the rock and roll life. **

Hyde stands at the pay phone, a beautiful, dark haired, olive-skinned woman next to him. He grinned at her and patted her rear end. "Just give me a few minutes and then I'll take you back stage." The girl nodded and stepped back to the other side of the hallway. She gave Hyde her best come hither look, and as Hyde turned back to the phone, he found himself hoping that his mother wouldn't be home.

_Vetri grabbed Paul's arm. "Wait a damn second. What happened to Jackie?" _

_Paul looked at Vetri rather sadly. "It didn't last." _

_"Why not?" _

_Paul pressed his lips together, then answered quietly. "Remember how she had a crush on Michael Kelso?" _

_Vetri nodded. _

_"Lets just say that crush never really ended." _

_Vetri looked down. "So, what? He stole her from Hyde?" He felt odd, like something was gone. Like something had broken. _

_Paul swallowed. "Essentially, yes." _

_Vetri scuffed his foot thing along the fog. "Figures." _

_"Keep watching, Vetri. Maybe you'll like what you see." _

But she was, and he had to make conversation with her, all the while trying to ignore the chick who was now wrapped around him from behind and kissing his neck.

"Uh, Mom," he said rather shakily due to the hand now running over his groin. "I gotta go."

"Wait, Steven. I just wanted to tell you something."

He closed his eyes. The girl...he couldn't remember her name...was doing things to him that no girl should ever STOP doing to him. "Can't it wait till next time, Mom?"

His mother sounded irritated. "Steven, I just wanted to tell you that I miss you, but I'm glad you're doing something you love. Is that okay with you, or should I just make you feel guitly for leaving your mother in Chicago all alone?"

Hyde caught the girl's hand and stopped her movement. He closed his eyes. "No. Okay, look, Mom, I just...." He rolled his eyes. "Thanks."

_Vetri shook his head. "Somehow I don't think Edna knows just all that Hyde is doing. She's cool, but I'm sure she wouldn't like her son sleeping with random chicks and partying every night." _

_Paul nodded. "No. I suspect you're right." _

Another night, another city, another chick. Hyde had her on his lap, this one also dark haired although her skin wasn't as tanned as the last. On the couch just six feet away, Steven Tyler pointed at Hyde. "Nice of you to join us, Hyde," he said after taking a long draft of his booze. He looked at the girl he had on his own lap. "See, Hyde has to call his mommy every week, you know, so she doesn't worry the big bad band is completely corrupting him."

Everyone, there were nearly three dozen people in the hotel suite, laughed, and Hyde did too. But he pointed at the lead singer. "Hey, at least it ain't a wife I gotta call and explain things to."

The room erupted in drunken laughter and catcalls.

The girl on his lap smiled down at him. "You know, I think you ARE a momma's boy."

He smirked. "You do, huh?" He rubbed her ass. "You into corrupting a momma's boy?"

She nodded and moved so she straddled him. "Oh, defintiely, Hyde. Definitely."

The next week in Los Angeles, Hyde was in the front of the stadium, rocking out to the band and hunting the crowd for a chick to pick up. Blonde after blonde after blonde. A few redheads here and there. He grimaced. Bleached blondes just weren't his thing. Neither were redheads. And since they'd been in California, that's all he'd seen.

And then he saw a brunette. With a smirk, he made his way over to her. "Hey," he said.

She smiled at him. "Hey yourself."

"I can get you backstage."

Her eyes, brown, lit up. "Really?" Her smile turned sexy and she moved closer to him. "And do I have to do anything for you in return?"

Hyde grinned and took a strand of her hair, long, not quite black, in his fingers. "Nothing you don't want to, baby."

_Vetri made a face. "Huh. So he doesn't like blondes, eh?" _

_Paul nodded. "No, he doesn't." He raised an eyebrow. " Think there's a reason?" _

_Vetri turned away from the opening in the fog and ignored Paul's question. "Is that all you have to show me?" _

_"Yes. What do you think?" _

_Vetri shrugged. "I guess it would be pretty awesome to be on tour with a band." He turned back and grinned. Nodded fast. "Yeah, it would. I mean, what could be better than having a different chick every night?" _

_So what if he didn't feel that weird feeling he had when he'd seen Jackie. So what if he still felt that missing something feeling. So what? He had a cool mom, and ended up having a cool job that wasn't so much a job as an endless party. That had to be a hell of a lot better than whatever being with Jackie would have been. _

_He walked back to Paul. "Okay, man. I'm ready to see whatever else you've got to show me." _

_Paul looked sad, but nodded. "Okay. Then its off to the bad." _


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I don't own.

**Warning: **Language, adult situations (not graphic)

**Author's Note: **For those of you reading this, and to those who've favorited or added an alert for it, thank you! And I'd like to especially thank a few people – Willofthewisp, Amlyn, Hyde's Bride, and Hydeluver for reviewing the last chapter. Reviews mean a lot to me, so thanks for taking the time. Now – I know this story is darker than Choice, particularly this first option for Hyde. And there is a reason for it – so please, please trust me. I think by the time the story is complete, you'll understand why I've done the things I've done. If not, then I've failed. I'm a little worried the story is failing already, but I'm going to keep going anyway. I think it'll turn out to be a true love story, just different from Jackie's side in Choice.

**The Lesser of Two Evils **

_Choice 1- The Bad – Naperville, Illinois_

**Chicago, Illinois, about a year after Bud and Edna began divorce proceedings. Young Steven Hyde, just about to turn ten, is visiting his father**_. _

_"Huh?" Vetri said, glaring at Paul. "You said Bud never spends time with Hyde." _

_Paul smiled gently. "I said that Bud is in and out, mostly out, of Hyde's life." _

_Vetri rolled his eyes. "Details, man, details." _

_"Just watch." _

The apartment was small and sparse. Hyde sat on an ugly brown and green couch with thin cushions and a arm about to fall off. He stared at a cartoon on the black and white television set in front of him, his face still and expressionless. Other than the voices on the show, the apartment was silent.

_"Is he alone?" Vetri asked. Paul nodded, and Vetri frowned. Some parent this Bud guy was. He sighed and turned away from the opening in the fog. "Look, man, do I really need to see this? Because if that stuff you showed me before was good, I sure as hel...heck don't want to see the bad." _

_Paul raised an eyebrow. "You found nothing good about what you saw? Not your relationship with your mother, with Jackie?" He shook his head. "I'd have thought at least the partying would have impressed you." _

_Vetri shrugged and turned back to the window. He crossed his arm flaps. "Whatever. I mean, I guess that stuff was cool." He wasn't sure. He supposed it would be exciting to be on tour with a rock band. And to hook up with different chicks. And to have a decent relationship with his mother. Leon told him once that he'd never known his mother. Said it had sucked. Vetri figured he didn't want that. But there was something about the good that was disappointing. Of course, he didn't know what. _

_He felt Paul's hand on his back and grimaced. _

_"I know you're reluctant, Vetri, but you need to see all of what I'm showing you. And just remember, there's a lot that I can't show you, that I don't even know, both good and bad. I'm only giving you basic themes that run through this choice. There's so much more. And maybe the good outweighs the bad. Maybe when you experience it, you'll find the good a lot better than it appears." _

_Vetri shrugged again. "Fine. Whatever. I'll watch." _

Hyde stood up and walked to the window. The window looked out on the front door of the apartment building, and when he saw his father approaching, he grinned. "Finally!" He grabbed a baseball hat off the back of the couch and ran out of the apartment. He barreled down the stairs and nearly collided with his father. "Dad! Finally! Can we go to the Cubs game now?" He'd never been to a Cubs game, and his father had promised him.

But his father wasn't alone, and Bud Hyde looked at the woman next to him, a cheap-looking blonde with too-tight clothes and too-heavy makeup. "Uh...Stevie. The game." He winced. "I forgot."

Hyde frowned, then looked down. He scuffed his foot on the floor. "Oh."

"Hey. Tell you what. There's a store down the block. Here's some money. Go get yourself some junk food and I'll let ya watch whatever you want on t.v." Bud chuckled and glanced at the woman. "All he really likes to do, anyway."

_Vetri rolled what would become his eyes. "Whatever. That's what he's been doing all day. And he didn't look like he was enjoying it." _

A few minutes later, Hyde was in the store, wandering around. His father was probably back at the apartment, locked in his bedroom and making weird, disgusting noises with that woman. He didn't want to go back. Didn't want to sit there and pretend that he didn't hear. He wanted to call his mom, but she was working. He knew that. He'd called earlier and she'd been too busy to talk.

He went to the cooler doors and started to grab a Coke, but then noticed the door at the end. Bottles of beer, cans of beer. Bud was fond of beer, always telling him how great it was. He'd even let him have a few sips here and there.

Hyde looked around. No one was paying attention to him. The lady at the counter was helping someone, and no one else was in the store. His stomach tight, he walked over to the door. He glanced over his shoulder. Still no one watching. He opened the door and took a couple bottles. Stuffed them into his jacket.

And on his way out, no one stopped him. He grinned all the way home. That was pretty cool.

Hours later, he was puking into the toilet, and Bud was yelling at his mom over the phone.

"Come and get him, Edna. _You're_ his mother. I can't deal with this_." _

_Vetri shook his head. "Can I kick that guy's ass?" _

_Paul said nothing, and Vetri looked at him. "You're not going to scold my language?" _

_Paul sighed. "I'm afraid Bud Hyde deserves that kind of language." _

_Vetri didn't answer. _

_"Edna comes and gets him." _

_Vetri still didn't answer. _

_"She loves him very much, Vetri." _

_But as a mother, Vetri thought. And for some reason, he thought of Jackie. _

**Unfortunately, most of the few times Bud Hyde deigns to spend with his son wind up that way. Now, lets go to 1980, back in Naperville. Hyde has just returned from an impromptu trip to Las Vegas, and he's returned with a wife. **

_"Wait a second," Vetri said loudly. "A wife?" He looked down and saw the Forman basement, saw Hyde sitting in a white chair with a chick who looked an awful lot like the woman he'd seen with Bud earlier perched on his lap. "That's his wife? That...blonde?" And then he saw Jackie sitting just a few feet away on the couch. _

_For a second, he couldn't seem to breathe. _

_Paul nodded and watched his charge. He smiled slightly. "Pretty, no?" _

_Vetri shook his head, looking at the wife, then at Jackie, then at the wife again. "Depends on how you define pretty." He glared at Paul. "And being that I still disagree with you on 'good'...And wait, I thought Hyde doesn't like blondes."_

_Paul chuckled. "He doesn't. Now, just watch."_

"So, how did it go telling Edna?" Michael Kelso asked as he stretched his arm lazily across Jackie's shoulders. Jackie just glared at him. He grinned. "Did she kick your ass? 'Cause my money's on her kicking your ass, and I need that five dollars."

Hyde shrugged and opened his mouth to speak, but the blonde on his lap piped up.

"Oh, it didn't go very well." She pouted. "I'm never good with the mothers." Her eyes lit up. "I'm really good with the fathers, though." She looked confused and turned to Hyde. "Where is your father, Hyde?" She pouted again. "I hope he's not dead."

Jackie turned a hostile look to the newcomer. "You're good with fathers beause you sleep with them, you whore!" Then she stood up. "God, Michael, will you just stop touching me?"

Hyde cocked his head and grinned. "Whats wrong, Jackie? You finally realizing how many diseases you're gonna catch from him?" His smile faded; his expression darkend into something that neared hate. Neither Sam nor Kelso noticed. Kelso also didn't understand the implications of Hyde's taunt.

"Burn!" Kelso yelled, and Sam laughed.

Jackie and Hyde stared at one another_. _

_Vetri looked at Paul. "What happened between them?" He looked back, and Jackie and Hyde still shared a locked gaze. And it seemed so heavy, full of something he couldn't quite figure out, even after Kelso and Sam started bantering about something stupid like dogs and pole dances. _

_"She chose Kelso," Paul answered. _

_Vetri shook his head. "Then why is she jealous? I mean, that's what it is, right? That remark about Sam sleeping with fathers...she's jealous." When Paul didn't answer, Vetri glared at him. "Well, whats the big deal? So they don't get along." He rolled his eyes. "The good stuff is almost worse than the bad so far." _

_Paul narrowed his eyes. "You don't think its bad that he and Jackie hate one another, and do for the rest of the time they know each other? After you saw what it was like between them before?" _

_Vetri shrugged and looked down again. "No big loss. I mean, he's got that Sam chick, and then later he gets all those women." Even as he spoke, he felt odd, off, wrong. And it bothered him. Pissed him off, actually. He turned from the window again. "I mean, she doesn't love him, right? She picked the king of the idiots over him." _

_Paul shook his head, and the sad look on his face only further enraged Vetri. _

_"She doesn't love him, okay?" He must have been yelling, because Paul looked startled. _

_Paul took a deep breath. "Come on, Vetri. More to see." He paused. "I'm going to ask that you don't interrupt this next part, Vetri. I know you'll want to, but just wait. Please." _

_Vetri gave a falsely nonchalant shrug and wished his gut or whatever would stop hurting. "Whatever_**." **

**It's a year later, 1981. We're still in Naperville, but Sam is long gone. Today is Jackie and Kelso's wedding day. Its a beautiful day**.

Hyde looked uncomfortable, both because he wore a tuxedo and was in a church. He stood in front of a closed door and took a deep breath. He took his glasses off. Breathed. Put them back on. Coughed. And repeated. All the while, he thought of what his mother had told him. _Tell her you want her, Steven. Tell her you don't want her to marry that idiot. Tell her you love her._ And after a few too many beers last night, after thinking of her all night, Hyde had decided to do it. Just tell her.

On the way to the church, for the first time since Bud left, he'd prayed. He prayed that she'd listen and forget what he'd said the morning after she'd come to him.

One last breath, then he knocked on the door. She answered with a "Come in!" and so he went in.

Then he stopped as if his body had forgotten how to move. His efforts to breathe ceased - he'd forgotten how to do that as well.

Jackie stood there in her wedding dress,a white gown, with a crown or roses in her hair, a wispy-looking lace veil surrounding her face like an angel's embrace. Her skin glowed. Her eyes shone. Her smile was only for him, at least for the first few seconds when her defenses were down.

And Hyde just stood there.

"Steven," she said softly. The sweetness of her smile disappeared and she looked nervous. Her hands twisted together.

He swallowed, his heart pounding with a fury he'd never imagined his body could create. "You're beautiful," he answered.

That special smile was back, and she clutched her hands to her chest. "You like me in a wedding dress," she breathed.

He gave her a half-smile, took half a step, opened his lips half-way to say something he'd been thinking and feeling since their fling ended. "Jackie," he began. "Listen..."

But her smile disappeared and she stepped backwards, bumping into the full length mirror behind her. "I'm sorry," she blurted out. Her face suddenly paled. "I'm sorry about what happened. I...I put you in a horrible position, and it..." Her laugh was tinny. "You were right. It was just cold feet." The tears in her eyes, and the way she looked down, belied her words, but Hyde didn't notice.

Because the words froze him inside and out.

She laughed again and turned to look in the mirror. "I can't believe Michael and I are finally getting married. I've been dreaming about this day since I was five, and now its finally here. It's gonna be so perfect_." _

_Vetri watched Jackie, not Hyde, and unlike the oblivious Hyde, saw how her chin trembled and how a tear slowly fell from her eye. He heard how her voice thinned and shook. He wondered if she was lying, both to Hyde and herself. _

_No. No. She was just being overdramatic. No way she actually loved Hyde. If she did, she'd never go through with this marriage. Vetri stiffened and glared at the chick who obviously made Hyde incredibly stupid. _

_"Vetri, watch Hyde_."

Hyde didn't see it. His eyes closed, head lowered, shoulders slumped. His hands made tight fists, then unclenched. He released raspy breaths that were almost but not quite silent_. _

_And Vetri wondered if Hyde felt the way he did. Completely beaten. Completely empty. Just...there, but a shell. A nothingness with a defined outline. _

_Paul touched his charge's outline. "Nothing to say?" _

_Vetri kept staring at the tormented couple. "You told me not to interrupt." _

_His voice sounded odd to him. _

_"And now I'm asking you to say something. What do you think?" _

_Vetri blinked. She was so beautiful... "She doesn't love him," he answered. Clearly Hyde believed so. Vetri watched as the future him turned and walked to the door. Heard himself wish her good luck over his shoulder, then leave, shut the door behind him. Watched Hyde pull a flask out of his tux coat and take a drink. _

_He figured that's what a broken heart looked like. _

_"That's really what you think?" _

_"Its what I see, man!" Vetri said loudly, turning to glare at Paul. "She chose Kelso over him again. Right there in black and white, or...color, whatever." _

_Paul persisted. "What do you feel, V?" _

_The use of his preferred name didn't do anything for him, and Vetri smiled sarcastically, he figured. "I don't feel anything, Paul." _

_And it wasn't a lie. _

_Just as Paul took hold of his arm flap, Vetri met his eyes. "Hold on. Is this..." He took a breath. "Is this why Hyde leaves Naperville?" _

_Paul smiled. "You'll see__**."**_

**Lets skip forward a bit - about fourteen hours later. Jackie and Michael Kelso had an evening wedding. Hyde spent the majority of the reception drunk. At one point, he and Eric Forman drank together and complained about women. After that, Hyde drank more and watched Eric and Donna, recently reunited, fight over Eric's sudden belief that he was "cool" because a few of Jackie's cheerleader friends, still in high school, were flirting with him. That led to Donna dragging a barely coherent Hyde off, and the next morning... **

Hyde looked extremely sick as he sat up in his bed. Pale, a little greenish in the gills, and with nearly bruise-like bags under his eyes. He groaned and reached up to rub his forehead. "Damn," he muttered. He closed his eyes. The daylight floating in through the blinds on his window hurt like hell.

Next to him, Donna sat, her face also pale, her features twisted into panic. She clutched the sheet to her chest. Her shoulders were bare and trembled. "Oh god," she said. "Oh. My. God."

Hyde couldn't look at her. Couldn't open his eyes. "Maybe we didn't..." He chuckled, even though it made his stomach and chest rebel. "Look, I was completely wasted. Maybe I couldn't..."

"No. We did." Donna closed her eyes. "Believe me, we did." She turned to her friend turned one night stand. "What do you remember?"

Hyde shook his head and lay back down. He put his hand over his eyes to try to block out the light. "Drinking, mainly. A ton. Oh, and being pissed at Forman for something," he said. Though try as he might, he couldn't remember exactly what.

Donna sighed. "He mentioned the fact that I once said making out with you would be like making out with my father, right down to the hair," she said.

Hyde pulled his hand off his face and glared at her. "What the hell, Donna?"

She lifted her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Hyde, but it would." Then her head fell back on her neck. "Oh my god, I think it actually was!"

Hyde snorted. "Gee, thanks."

She started to cry. "Oh,god, Hyde, what have I done? What about Eric? ERIC!" She shook her head. "I mean, yeah, I was pissed at him for flirting with those girls, but you know what? He was right. I do sometimes act like he's lucky to be with me. Like he'd never do any better. And now...oh my god..."

She got out of bed and started to search the floor with her clothes. Hyde turned his head in the opposite direction.

"What am I going to tell him, Hyde? How in the hell am I going to explain this? By the way, honey, remember our huge fight at Jackie's wedding? Well, I got drunk and wound up sleeping with your best friend. I'm so sorry. It'll never happen again."

She sat on the bed, her back to Hyde, and bent her head down into her hands.

Hyde sat up and looked at the back of her head. "Calm down, Donna," he said, his voice hoarse. "Look, he doesn't ever have to know about this."

Donna looked over her shoulder. "You won't say anything?"

"Why in the hell would I say anything? You think I want Forman or Jackie..." He cut himself off and tried to cover with a loud, pitiful moan. Donna just smirked and he rolled his eyes.

Then he closed his eyes and muttered a few choice words.

_Vetri blinked. "He feels like he cheated on Jackie," he said. Oddly enough, so did Vetri. _

_Paul nodded. "He does." _

_It didn't make much sense, considering Jackie was married and had made it clear she didn't love Hyde. _

_"But he loves her, Vetri. That's why he feels that way." _

_Vetri shook his head. "Whatever," he grumbled. "He's an idiot for loving a chick who doesn't love him back." He returned his attention to the scene down there. _

Hyde was sitting up now, and Donna stood in the doorway, now dressed but still pale and haggard looking. "Look, Hyde," she said, her voice soft and apologetic. "This...thing...I mean, it wasn't..."

Hyde grinned. "Don't worry, Donna. It was just a drunken mistake. I'm not suddenly in love with you." He raised an eyebrow. "Considering I can't really remember doing it with you."

Donna raised an eyebrow. "I know," she answered. Her lips curved upwards. "Because you kept calling me Jackie."

Hyde lay back down and turned his head on his pillow_. _

_Vetri stared at Hyde's face. The guy looked broken. "So what happens? Does Forman find out?" _

_Paul sighed. "You'll find out later. There's one more thing you need to see here_**." **

**New York, 1986. Hyde is no longer with Aerosmith. Instead, he lives in a small aparment, reminiscent in many ways of his father's in Chicago**.

The carpet was stained with booze and food he'd only half-heartedly tried to get out, but at the moment, Hyde didn't care. He sat on the floor, his back against the white and bare wall. He was sweating, groaning, shaking uncontrollably.

The door opened, and a guy walked in. "Got it, man," the guy said.

Hyde's eyes opened and he gave a weak smile. "Finally."

"Yeah." The guy pointed at Hyde. "You owe me, man. I'm only doing this cause you look like shit and I'm kind of worried you might die on me."

Hyde nodded. "Yeah, whatever. Just...can you do it already?"

He looked at his arms and winced.

_Vetri gasped. "What the hell are those?" Hyde's arms were a mess; cuts and marks that made him cringe. _

_Paul answered quietly. "Track marks. From drugs. Heroin, to be precise." _

_Vetri looked down. Leon told him about drugs, said to stick to the minor stuff, pot or something, weed or whatever. Said the hard stuff could ruin everything, could kill. And his fate might be exactly that. _

_There was that emptiness again. _

_Vetri lifted and shook his head. "Look, man," he said, turning to face Paul. "You don't need to show me any more of this choice. I'm not gonna pick it. His life sucks." _

_"Are you so sure your other choice is going to be better?"_

_As Paul led him towards "The Ugly", Vetri couldn't help but think about that. Maybe nothing would be better. Maybe nothing would be truly good. _

_Maybe he just request to be rethought, or aborted, or whatever God did with souls given the choice between lives not worth living. _


End file.
